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Ear to the Ground

Court Rules Against FCC Censorship

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Posted on Jun 5, 2007
wardrobe malfunction
msnbc.com

The national indecency debate boiled over in February 2004, during the Super Bowl halftime show on CBS, after singer Janet Jackson’s right breast was briefly exposed.

In a landmark ruling, a federal appeals court has sided with broadcasters against the Federal Communications Commission on the issue of indecency, saying the regulatory body has not adequately explained how the Constitution could permit the censorship of “indecent” language.


Washington Post:

A federal appeals court tossed out an indecency ruling against Rupert Murdoch’s Fox television network [Monday] and broadly questioned whether the Federal Communications Commission has the right to police the airwaves for offensive language.

In a 2 to 1 decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in New York ruled that the FCC went too far in issuing a 2006 decision against Fox Broadcasting for separate incidents in 2002 and 2003 after singer Cher and celebrity Nicole Richie each uttered an expletive on live television.

The ruling is a rebuke to the FCC and a victory for television networks, which in recent years have pushed back against the FCC’s crackdown on indecency. In 2004, the agency reversed years of policy and effectively branded even “fleeting,” or one-time, use of an expletive off-limits on broadcast television and radio, angering Hollywood, which warned of a chilling effect on programming.

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By Rick Brown, June 7, 2007 at 2:08 pm Link to this comment

It’s amusing to me that in the midst of the bloodiest U.S. conflict since Vietnam, with internationally syndicated evangelists preaching abject hate and intolerance, with environmental decline picking up speed, and with an administration coming unraveled under the weight of scandal, lies, and abuse of authority, that there is still a fucking commission having meetings concerning the lasciviousness of a goddamn nipple.  thanks for protecting our fragile sensibilities guys.  appreciate ya.

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By THOMAS BILLIS, June 7, 2007 at 7:54 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

What a great day for democracy.The big point was that FCC made such a vague definition of what is obscenity that it put a chill on everything.Now if a court could only legislate that Ed R Morrow be brought back from the dead and teach these networks how to cover news.

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By wagonjak, June 6, 2007 at 12:42 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

As I’ve said on other blogs on this event…all the talk about what constitutes going over the line on decency on television is way off the real point which is…

Why is the FCC focusing on exposed nipples and cuss words when their real job is being ignored, which is regulating a news industry that is being controlled by fewer and fewer huge corporations to the detriment of truth and reality in the US?

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By rage, June 6, 2007 at 11:13 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

Who do these FCC idiots think they’re fooling?

Last week when Dumya went off the rails during his daily briefing that fateful morning, there was more cussing heard from his office than on an episode of the Sopranos. Thanks to repugnant selfrighteous charlatans like our gay bashing Crystal Methodist Rev. Ted Haggard, our child safety expert Congressman Mark Foley, and White House “journalist” Jeff Gannon, we enjoyed much more clammor of full frontal nudity, too. We even saw our President grope another head of state. 

....hypocrites!

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By carlito paquito, June 6, 2007 at 10:16 am Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

See Rupert? you wash my back and I’ll wash yours. Even Stevens. Signed Bush & Co.

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By DennisD, June 5, 2007 at 9:24 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

Whose court is this anyway? Can’t be the one Bu$h bought. Gonzo will have to start removing judges too.

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PatrickHenry's avatar

By PatrickHenry, June 5, 2007 at 6:10 pm Link to this comment

Some democracy restored.

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By Trigger finger, June 5, 2007 at 4:34 pm Link to this comment
(Unregistered commenter)

Nothing should surprise us any longer.  This country is in a free fall into the pits of HELL thanks to corporate America and our gutless government. We are all inside a twisting jet falling from the sky.  No exit and no one in charge. Just ever increasing twisting in ever decreasing circles. All you privileged corporate thieves with all your stolen wealth and fancy mansions are aboard and you will be screwed with everyone else into the everlasting flames.  The more money you have in your pocket, the hotter you will burn. So steal all you can from every employee you have, from every government bank.  Get it all, stuff it in your pockets and up your ass then, kneel down and kiss and thank mother earth. And if you put your ear to the soil and listen carefully, you will hear Kenny boy screaming at the top of his lungs in obvious pain. This is eternity for our privileged CEO’s and elected government criminals who have bought in with the corporate criminals. Ted and John and and Dick and George, I hope you stuffed your pockets and swam in your oil fields. Now, go get fitted for your HOT pants. You led us into IRAQ and now we will follow you into hell. Thanks to all you greedy self serving moron asses.

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By rowdy, June 5, 2007 at 2:53 pm Link to this comment

this is really amazing. a bush court taking a stance against KKKristian demagoguery. the most amusing thing about it: kevin j martin issued a letter in the name of the FCC in which he uses the word “fuck” 4 times and the word “shit” 3 times. fucking hilarious. special thanks should go to “fuck you” dick cheney as well as “fuck you” john mccain and let us not forget to thank the asshole in chief for his famous “get hezbollah to stop doing this shit”

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